Pee-wee's big S.A. adventure

He even finds there really is a basement at the Alamo.

Updated 2:08 am, Saturday, August 6, 2011

Comedian Pee Wee Herman reacts to fans as he made a visit to the evening session of the Dallas Cowboys training camp at the Alamodome on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2011. Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net

Comedian Pee Wee Herman reacts to fans as he made a visit to the evening session of the Dallas Cowboys training camp at the Alamodome on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2011. Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net

Photo: KIN MAN HUI, --

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Comedian Pee Wee Herman (left) shows a picture he took with Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo at the evening session of the Dallas Cowboys training camp at the Alamodome on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2011. Herman take a break from his appearance on a cooking show and stopped by the training camp. Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net

Comedian Pee Wee Herman (left) shows a picture he took with Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo at the evening session of the Dallas Cowboys training camp at the Alamodome on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2011. Herman take a

Comedian Pee Wee Herman (left) makes a face while posing for a picture with Cowboys tight end Martellus Bennett (80) at the evening session of the Dallas Cowboys training camp at the Alamodome on Thursday, Aug.

After 26 years, Pee-wee Herman finally has found the basement at the Alamo.

Employees at the state-owned shrine confirmed reports that actor-comedian Paul Reubens, who plays the hyperactive man-boy with a red bow tie, did a taping there Thursday for Bravo's “Top Chef,” to air in October.

Alamo spokesman Tony Caridi and a crew member initially claimed a bicycle ad was being filmed in Alamo Hall. On Friday, Caridi said a “major television production” had been shot at the Alamo, but added he was “legally bound ... not to release or confirm any information.”

Members of the Alamo staff, who are barred from speaking to the media, said Reubens shot the Bravo segment, took photos with employees and got a tour of the basement below the Alamo Sales Museum.

In an irreverent scene in his 1985 film “Pee-wee's Big Adventure,” Pee-wee visits the Alamo, searching for his bicycle. He gets laughed at after he asks where the basement is and is told there isn't one.

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The filming at the hallowed site of a former mission and storied 1836 battle is causing a stir within the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, the Alamo's longtime custodians.

Some Daughters have expressed consternation, saying his presence doesn't create a “family-friendly” impression.

Reubens, 58, is a former registered sex offender, having completed a three-year probated sentence in 2007 on a misdemeanor obscenity charge in California. He was at the Alamo the same day as visiting officials of the Texas General Land Office, which will assume state oversight Sept. 1.

Alamo employees said Reubens was friendly and well-behaved. And Pee-wee, his alter ego, brought his bike with him this time.